Featured 5 Tribal Masks - please help

Pops brought home 5 tribal masks today from the thrifts. A lady and her son nearly knocked him down trying to purchase them from him, even followed him to another shop!!

I will post them throughout this thread

Here is #1

 

#2

 

#3

 

#4

 

and #5

 

The first one does not look like a mask to me. I see an amusing figure of a mouse on its back, feet in the air. Size?

 

12" by 6" by 8". better pics.

 

Masks are not my specialty in the least, but I know what I see at the thrift and it isn't close to what these look like. Intriguing!

If the two auctions INH found are any indication, these are worth some money. (Well done again, INH )

I think that Pops scored!

 

The second is probably Baule, Ivory Coast.

https://www.hamillgallery.com/BAULE/BauleMasks/BauleMasks.html

I believe the third is Ibo/Igbo, from Nigeria.
The last one is made for the tourist trade.

 

Even I can tell that some of those have been worn. Pops may have scored big. Even the ones I can't tell on are better than airport art, and they look old. Whoever carved those knew what he was doing.

 

they're all tourist works.....but....there is some age there !

 

I agree, all tourist, but mostly very nice quality. Pops did well.

Tourist ware isn't always bad, some of it ends up being very collectable. Think of 19th century Italian pietra dura and micro-mosaics, Bali Art Deco, Walter Kramer jewellery (early Modernist from the German Baltic resort of Fischland), etc.
And it is a way of preserving crafts that would otherwise be lost.

 

Nice lot of masks. I like that warthog mask the best.

I purchased a lot of tourist masks once. Ended up doing pretty well compared to what I had invested in them.

 

I must disagree with @komokwa and @Any Jewelry (sorry guys). The Bwa warthog, Baule portrait mask, and Ibo mask show features consistent with masks made for use rather than as tourist wall hangers. They are stylistically appropriate, and have the holes around the rim that would be used to attach the cloth or raffia that would have covered the dancer. They may not be "museum" quality, but still genuine. I am not as familiar with the Eket sun mask tradition, but it also shows signs of having been made for use.
Pieces made for sale typically do not have means for attaching the costume (why bother?), often have non-traditional colors and finishes, and show little signs of use, like the last one posted by @wildrose.


reverse of another Bwa mask

Baule portrait mask being danced:



http://christas.dk/baule-mask/
Note treatment of the rim. This site gives a good description of the Mblo dance in which such portrait masks would be worn, noting that "The costume would have been attached to the mask by cords that were threaded through the holes in the mask."

Igbo dancer:

 

thank you all so much for taking the time to respond. I guess that lady was chasing him for a reason. LOL

 

Your link...read the fine print !!!

" Although elegantly carved, this Baule mask shows no evidence of age or use and was probably made to be sold. It includes a bite bar."

 

our bite bar has teeth marks.. LOL

 

well then it's possible that it was used.........or chewed...!